Based in Cambodia, Six Members of "No-Show Fraud" Ring Sentenced to Prison

Criminal Organization Based in Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Intercepted Payments from Korean Restaurants and Distributors

Two First-Level Counselors Defrauded Over KRW 5.7 Billion

A criminal group based in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, which had been carrying out "no-show" (proxy purchase) scams targeting Koreans and others, has been sentenced to prison. The group went beyond simple fraud by establishing a command structure and meticulously dividing roles into primary counselors, secondary counselors, and team leaders, thereby swindling tens of billions of won.

On April 4, the 12th Criminal Division of the Seoul Eastern District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Seyong) announced that it had sentenced team leader Mr. A and his partner Ms. B, who were indicted on charges of joining and operating a criminal organization, fraud, and violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (Fraud by Means of Telecommunications), to seven years in prison with a forfeiture of 4.21 million won and four years in prison with a forfeiture of 2.56 million won, respectively. Mr. D and Ms. E, who were indicted on the same charges, were each sentenced to five years in prison. Mr. C and Ms. F, who were brought to trial on charges of joining a criminal organization and related offenses, were sentenced to two years and two years and six months in prison, respectively.

Seoul Eastern District Court, Songpa-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jaehyun Park

Mr. A and others were indicted on charges of operating out of Sihanoukville, Cambodia between July and November 2025, deceiving restaurants and distribution companies in Korea into making proxy purchases of expensive alcoholic beverages and similar schemes, and in the process defrauding a total of 324 victims out of 6.17 billion won.

Mr. A and his associates operated as part of an organization led by a ringleader known as "Shingwo." Mr. A acted as the team leader, while Mr. C, Mr. D, Ms. E, and Ms. F were assigned as "primary counselors" who contacted potential victims posing as customers making reservations or bulk orders. Ms. B, who disguised herself as a representative of a business identified as a proxy purchasing target, acted as a "secondary counselor." Each member had a clearly defined role.

Ringleader "Shingwo" rented an office in Sihanoukville around May 2025 and prepared about 20 computers, 20 tablets, burner SIM cards, a database of Korean restaurant phone numbers, and crime scenarios. Initially, Mr. A and his partner Ms. B belonged to another organization but were recruited and joined this group in September of that year.

The group would contact restaurants pretending to make reservations and request proxy purchases of expensive alcoholic beverages (primary counselor), and then pose as a liquor distributor to defraud the victims by collecting payment (secondary counselor).

In addition to restaurants, the group targeted a victim operating an electrical supplies distribution company by impersonating an army officer and claiming to purchase lighting fixtures and vehicle fire-suppression grenades for military installation, thereby embezzling the payment. Primary counselor Mr. D defrauded 2.58 billion won from 136 victims, while Ms. E swindled 3.1 billion won from 165 victims. Team leader Mr. A and Ms. B, who joined the organization later, extorted 490 million won from 23 individuals in just three months from September to November last year.

The organization also implemented a strict command system, with members using aliases among themselves, submitting their passports and mobile phones to a manager, and even requiring permission for outings. Members acting as primary counselors received a base salary of 2,000 to 5,000 dollars and were given additional incentives based on the amount of criminal proceeds they diverted if the fraud was successful.

The court stated, "Given that they joined a criminal organization with the purpose of committing crimes that cause significant social harm and carried out these acts, severe punishment is inevitable." The court added that it also considered the fact that Mr. A had a prior conviction for a similar offense and that Mr. D left the country during trial for fraud in 2024 and committed additional crimes.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.